Season Opener: Baseball Party Ideas

When it came time to plan my son Miles’ 2nd birthday, it didn’t take long to come up with a theme. At the tender age of 2, the boy is OBSESSED with anything related to sports. To narrow down the infinite list of possible sports themes, I chose the one that we’re most familiar with: baseball. My husband played baseball growing up, throughout college and still plays today, so I had plenty of baseball party ideas to get me started. Plus, with baseball season just starting, it was perfect timing!

For the invite, I chose Pear Tree’s Baseball All Star Kids Birthday Invitations. I loved that they were simple, featured a picture of Miles and were a unique shape that would stand out in the mail. The coordinating address labels carried the theme through to the envelope and were just as adorable. Additional Tip: On the invitation ask guests to wear their favorite baseball jersey to the party for added fun. My guests knew my love for ‘theme-ing’ and did it without being told. It was awesome!
For the decor, I used red and aqua to create the overall look I was going for. For the table, I purchased a red tablecloth at the local Dollar Store and used a table runner I already had to dress it up. For the centerpiece, I took a simple clear vase and filled it with baseballs, both of which I had lying around the house. I opted for new baseballs for the centerpiece but you could definitely utilize used baseballs to give the party a more vintage feel.To bring more aqua into the table design, I purchased aqua plates from Party City and dressed them up with red napkins tied around aqua silverware. I used red and white polka dot ribbon to bring in a pattern and add a little dimension to the table. I completed the look by scattering Have a Ball Table Decor from Pear Tree onto the table.
Since you can never have too many baseball party ideas, I made a banner created out of craft paper from Michaels, and again, I brought in the red and white polka dot ribbon for a little something extra. I opted for the banner to read ‘Play Ball’ instead of ‘Happy Birthday’ as I wanted to reuse it and hang it in Miles’ room down the road.
I decided to carry the baseball theme through the food as well. We served hot dogs, brats, chips and cheese, cotton candy and fresh peanuts for guests to enjoy. For dessert, I made cupcakes and decorated them to look like baseballs.
For the food table, I again used the table decor from Pear Tree but this time displayed it differently. I drilled a hole into several baseballs and then stuck a photo clip holder (can be found at any craft store) into the holes. Then I placed the balls in small baseball gloves and attached different pieces of table decor to the photo clips.
As a thank you, I created baseball themed gift bags for the little ones that attended the party. I purchased baskets from the Dollar Store (2 for $1) and then filled them with red tissue paper. Each basket included a wristband, tattoos, stickers and a rubber baseball. The baskets were adorned with a personalized Baseball All Star Photo Gift Tags, which featured a picture of Miles and a message on the back thanking guests for attending. I also ordered personalized Hope You Had A Ball Thank You Cards from Pear Tree with Miles’ name on them. I love that the back of the thank yous were printed with a pattern.
Overall, the party was a breeze to plan. By utilizing red and aqua as the main colors and bringing in hints of baseball here and there, I could easily create the tie-together look I was going for without having to go overboard looking for baseball themed accessories. It was a hit with the guests and easy for this busy mom of two to plan… a homerun in my book! 😉

Angie:Our guest blogger, Angie, is a busy wife and mom with two energetic (and adorable!) kids, Kate and Miles. She works as a Marketing Brand Manager, loves her husband and girls’ nights equally, and enjoys spending free time at the lake with family, shopping, playing volleyball, and Pinteresting—that is a word, right? Read more about Angie and her family at nesslerfamily.blogspot.com.

Christy's day job is the Marketing and Merchandising Manager at Pear Tree, but in her free time she loves putting together events like birthday parties for her two boys, helping friends with their weddings, parties, showers, etc., dabbling in photography, and spending time with her family. She is quick to tell you that her preoccupation with Pinterest is not an addiction. It's market research. To get to know Christy a little better, visit her blog, A Peek Into 31 Otter Court.